Ice thrilled to get prep league MVP

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This article was published 22/04/2020 (2211 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Zach Benson is a small guy but a big season with the Yale Academy Bantam Prep team cemented his status as one of the most dangerous players in his age group.

On Wednesday, the Winnipeg Ice took the 5-6, 135-pound left-winger from Chilliwack, B.C., with the 14th-overall pick in the WHL Bantam Draft.

Benson, who led the Canadian Sports School Bantam Prep League in scoring with 86 points, including 30 goals, in 30 games, was one of 12 members of the Yale squad selected in the draft of 2005-born players.

Team captain Tanner Molendyk, a defencemen, went fifth overall to the Saskatoon Blades. Benson served as an alternate captain and was also named the league’s MVP.

“At the end of the day, we felt he was the smartest from a hockey IQ standpoint in this draft,” said Ice assistant general manager Jake Heisinger.

“We prioritize hockey sense, skill and speed and Zach checked all those boxes. From that standpoint, we were really excited to be able to select a player who has elite skill and hockey sense. He’s only 14, so he will get bigger.”

Benson, who turns 15 on May 12, is finishing Grade 9 and will not be eligible to play full-time in the WHL until 2021-22.

At Yale, he played on a high-powered line that also featured Logan Wormald, picked in the third round by the Lethbridge Hurricanes, and Emmett Finney, a fourth-rounder by the Kamloops Blazers.

“I’m a player that likes to play on the offensive side for sure,” said Benson. “I compete hard every night. I think the game very well and I also like to be responsible in the D-zone.”

Except for a premature end to the season due to the pandemic, it was a dream season for Benson. And he’s focusing on eventually continuing his career with the Ice.

“I’m a Western (Hockey League guy,” said Benson, who has frequently played spring hockey with No. 1 pick Connor Bedard. “I’ve always dreamed of playing in that league, especially with Winnipeg selecting me. I’ve never heard a bad thing about Winnipeg. I’m super, super excited that they selected me.”

Heisinger said Benson wowed the Ice scouting staff consistently during frequent viewings.

“He makes everyone around him better and we think everything he brings to the table is everything we look for in a player,” said Heisinger. “So for us, it was a no-brainer. There still so much growing and upside with him. It’s exciting for us because we know he’s already such a gifted player. On top of it, he’s an extremely hard worker.”

Winnipeg did not have a second-round pick this year (it was traded to the Red Deer Rebels as part of a deadline deal for defenceman Dawson Barteaux) but Heisinger was very pleased to land Calgary Royals centre Aiden Oiring — a player he had rated much higher — in the third round.

“Oiring was a guy who drove the bus for his team and the combination of having two very talented players like him and have him play with Zach (Benson) one day as part of the ‘05 group one day was very exciting,” said Heisinger.

Fourth-round choice Ashton Cumby, a hulking 6-4, 194-pound defenceman with the Lloydminster Bobcats, could also pay dividends.

“He’s a guy that is still very raw and learning the game but the one thing I think that really stood out for us is every time we watched him he got better and better,” said Heisinger. “That size and his mobility, his hands and feet are really starting to catch up to the rest of his body. We think that there’s real potential for him to grow into a real good Western league defender.”

 

mike.sawatzky@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @sawa14